ZA3075. G3 K84 bite C.l G387231 INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS AND INFORMATION BEHAVIOUR PATTERNS OF FACULTY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON BY OLIVIA AKOSUA KPODOE A THESIS PRESENTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION STUDIES, UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON, IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF MASTER OF PHILOSOPHY DEGREE IN INFORMATION STUDIES JULY, 2008 INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS AND INFORMATION BEHAVIOUR PATTERNS OF FACULTY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON BY OLIVIA AKOSUA KPODOE DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION STUDIES UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON W £ 3 I ' 1 ' A ' v \ L ■ DECLARATION I do hereby declare that except for references to other works, which I have duly acknowledged, this thesis is the result of my own original research. This thesis has neither been presented in whole nor in part elsewhere for another degree. Olivia Akosua Kpodoe Candidate Supervisors: DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated to my lovely and wonderful children, Adzo Woeyram Makafui and Kwami Woenam Baku. This thesis is the result of research in information requirements and information behaviour patterns of the academic staff in the University o f Ghana, Legon, which started in 2005. I am grateful to the Authorities of the University of Ghana, Legon, for granting me the Part-time Study Leave to pursue this course of study which will enhance my job at the Balme Library. Many people have contributed immensely to the success o f this thesis. A grateful word to my supervisors, Professor (Mrs.) C. O. Kisiedu of the Department o f Information Studies, and Professor A.A. Alemna, the University Librarian and also a Part-time Lecturer at the Department of Information Studies, University of Ghana, Legon. Words cannot describe your diligence and enthusiasm in the supervision o f this work. I am however, solely responsible for any inadequacies and shortcomings which may be found in this work. Thanks too, to my fellow graduate students, Mrs. Sarah Adinku, Ms. Sitsofe Dzansi, Messrs. Emmanuel Dake, James Brikumah, Michael Dzandu and Edwin Ayemor. Your support was marvelous and is very much appreciated. Our meetings at Tasty Treats - Nogouchi and the DATAD Office are vividly remembered. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS To my senior colleagues, Messrs. Venatus Kwadjo Fosu and John-Oswald Korku Amekuedee o f the Cataloguing Department; and also, Mr. Barfi-Adomako Owusu o f the Electronic Support Unit of the Balme Library, I say a very big thank you for your constant and persistent reminder of the need to complete the thesis in time so that I could assume greater and higher responsibilities. I very much appreciate your concerns and thoughts of me, not forgetting the pieces of advice on financial issues. The Ameka Family - Gabriel, Joana, Albert, Christabel, Edem and Seyram - o f N o.14 Lower Hill, University o f Ghana, Legon, may God richly bless you all for being there for my family. Your care is very much appreciated. Dr. Kwaku Mensah Ganu of Ghana Universities Press, I thank you for proof-reading the thesis. To Emmanuel Nana Bekoe of the “Secretariat” of the Cataloguing Department of the Balme Library, I am grateful for your constant reminder of “Madam what about the work”, and also for formatting the whole thesis. Finally, my sincere thanks to you, my dear husband Dr. Daniel Etomam Kofi Baku of the History Department of the University o f Ghana, Legon, for your support and encouragement. I know that you care. To my dearest children, Adzo Woeyram and Kwami Woenam, I say thank you ever so much for supporting and tolerating my disappearance for hours from home as I researched and wrote this thesis. May the Good Lord Bless You All. Thank You. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Declaration ....... ........ i Dedication ....... ........ ii Acknowledgements ....... ........ iii Table of Contents ....... ........ v List of Tables ...... ........ xi List of Abbreviations ...... ........ xii Abstract ....... ........ xiv CHAPTER ONE 1.0 Introduction ...... ........ 1 1.1 Background to the Study ...... ........ 1 1.1.2 The University Library ...... ........ 2 1.1.3 Background Information on the Balme L ib rary 5 1.1.3.1 Background to the Balme Library ...................... 5 1.1.3.2 Recent Developments in the Balme Library ......... 7 1.2 Statement of Problem ...... ........ 8 1.3 Purpose of the Study ...... ........ 10 1.4 Research Questions ...... ........ 10 1.5 Justification ...... ....... 11 1.6 Definition o f Terms 12 1.7 Scope of the Study 14 1.8 Organization o f the Study 15 References 18 CHAPTER TWO 2.0 Literature Review 20 2.1 Introduction 20 2.2 Models of Information Seeking Behaviour 20 2.3 Information Needs 23 2.4 Information Needs o f Academics ......... 25 2.5 Factors Influencing Information-Seeking Behaviour 28 2.5.1 Psychological Factors 29 2.5.2 Cognitive Styles 31 2.5.3 Emotional Factors 31 2.6 Subject Disciplines Difference ......... 34 2.7 The Library-Faculty Connection ........ 35 2.8 Availability and Use o f Electronic Resources and the Information-Seeking Behaviour on the Ghanaian Scene 36 References 42 Page vi CH APTER TH R EE 3.0 Methodology 49 3.1 Introduction 49 3.2 Research Design 49 3.2.1 Survey Research 50 3.2.2 Selection of Subjects 52 3.2.3 Sampling Design 55 3.2.4 Instrument for and mode of data collection ........ 58 3.2.5 Strengths and Weaknesses of the Questionnaire Method Strengths 59 References 61 CH APTER FOU R 4.0 Data Analysis and Presentation ........ 63 4.1 Introduction 63 4.2 The Academic Staff 64 4.2.1 Introduction 64 4.2.2 Biographical Information................ 64 4.2.3 Level of Awareness of Services and Resources .... 65 4.2.4 Use of Services and Resources 67 4.2.5 Level of Use of the Balme L ibrary 68 4.2.6 Information Seeking Behaviour ........ 70 4.3 The Library Staff 77 Page vii 4.3.1 B ackground inform ation o f respondents ......... 77 4.3.2 Awareness of Information needs of Academic Staff 77 CHAPTER FIVE 5.0 Discussion o f Findings 81 5.1 Introduction ...................... 81 5.2 Discussion of the Findings on the Academic Staff ........ 82 5.2.1 Level of Awareness of Resources and Services ... 82 5.2.2 Use of Resources and Services 82 5.3.3 Information Seeking 84 5.2.4 General Information Sources 85 5.2.5 Use o f the Balme Library 87 5.2.6 Types of Materials Sought in the Balme Library 89 5.2.7 Problems Encountered During Information Seeking 89 5.2.8 Measures to Ensure Effective Use o f Library Services and Resources 90 5.3 Discussion o f the Findings on Library Staff ...................... 91 5.3.1 Promoting Resources and Services 92 5.3.2 User Needs Assessment 94 5.3.3 Suggestions on How to Make the Balme Library’s Services/Resources K n o w n .................... 95 References 97 viii CHAPTER SIX 6.0 Summary of Findings, Conclusion and Recommendations ......... 99 6.1 Introduction ....... ........ 99 6.2 Summary o f Findings 100 6.2.1 Major findings about the Academic Staff include 101 6.2.2 Major Findings about the Library Staff were that 103 6.3.1 Conclusion 104 6.4.0 Recommendations 105 6.4.1 Recommendation for the Academic Staff ........ 105 6.4.2 The Balme Library should be the first point of call during information-seeking 105 6.4.3 Academic staff should make their information needs k n o w n 105 6.4.4 Academic Staff should accept the offer to serve as Faculty/ Departmental representatives to the Library ........ 106 6.4.5 The Acquisitions Department of the Balme Library educate or explain to the academic staff why they should keep updating the reading lists for courses 107 6.4.6 The academic staff should make extensive use of the U G ca t 107 6.4.7 Establishment o f a Liaison Programme 107 6.4.8 Partnership between Academic Staff and Library Staff ........ 107 6.5 Recommendations for the Library Staff ........ 108 Page ix 6.5.1 The Library Staff Should Find Ways to acquaint the Academic Staff with the Library Resources and Services ..................... 109 6.5.2 Newsletters I l l 6.5.3 Open Day or a Library Week Celebrations I l l 6.5.4 Periodic Assessment o f Effectiveness of Services and Resources 112 6.5.5 User Information Needs Assessment 112 6.5.6 Selective Dissemination of Information (SDI) Services ........ 113 6.5.7 Develop Skills and Progr ammes 113 6.5.8 Establish a Culture of Research 113 Bibliography 115 Appendix I: Questionnaire for the Academic Staff 125 Appendix II: Questionnaire for the Library Staff 132 Page x LIST OF TABLES Table PaSe 1 Selection of Population 53 2 Stratification sample 57 3 Level of Awareness of the Library’s Resource by Academic Staff 65 4 Level of Awareness of Services by Academic Staff .................. 66 5 How Respondents know get to know about the Library’s Resources and Services? 67 6 Non-use of the Library 69 7 Ways to Improve Library Resources and Services .................. 70 8 Reasons for Seeking Information 71 9 General Information Source Used 72 10 Where Information Sources are Obtained ............................... 73 11 Type of Material Sought in the Balme Library ................. 74 12 Problems Encountered in the Balme L ib ra ry ............................... 75 13 Suggest Measures to Ensure Effective Use of the Library 76 14 Library Staff Knowledge of Information Needs of Academic Staff 78 15 How Library Professionals Make Resources and Services Known 79 16 Suggestion on How to make the Balme Library Resources/Services Known 80 xi ACURIL - Association of Carribean University, Research and Institutional Libraries AFUF - Academic Facility User Fee AJOL - African Journal Online AAAS - American Association for the Advancement o f Science BLRDD - British Library Research and Development Department BLRIC - British Library Research and Innovation Centre CDP - Collection Development Policy CONSLA - Congress of Southeast Asian Librarians CSF - Critical Success Factors CSIR - Council for Scientific and Industrial Research DATAD - Database o f African Theses and Dissertations DLAS - Department of Library and Archival Studies GAUA - Ghana Association of University Administrators GNCIC - Ghana National Committee on Internet Connectivity ICT - Information and Communication Technology IFLA - International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions LIS - Library and Information Science OCLC - Online Computer Library Centre OPAC - Online Public Access Catalogue RFUF - Residential Facility User Fee LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS SDI - Selective Dissemination of Information SPSS - Statistical Package for the Social Sciences UGcat - University of Ghana Online Public Access Catalogue UTAG - University Teachers Association of Ghana WRI - Water Research Institute WWB _ World Wide Web ABSTRACT This thesis reports the result of a study of the information requirements and information behaviour patterns o f the academic staff o f selected faculties of the University of Ghana, Legon. The study also seeks to find out whether or not the professional and para- professional staff o f the Balme Library are aware o f the information needs of faculty and their roles in meeting these needs. Data were collected by using a questionnaire from the sample taken from the Faculties of Arts, Social Studies and Sciences. Some of the questions for the academic staff include, level of awareness of services and resources of the Balme Library; use of the Balme Library; reasons for seeking information; general information sources used; where information sources are sought; type of information sought in the Balme Library, problems encountered whilst seeking information in the Balme Library and suggested measures to ensure effective use of the Balme Library. The questionnaire for the Library Staff included questions on awareness o f information needs of academic staff; means by which services and resources were made known to the academic staff and suggestions on ways to make the Library resources known. Some of the findings of the study concerning the academic staff are that, majority of them were aware of the services and resources of the Balme Library but rarely use them. It was also revealed that the academic staff look for information for various reasons and they also use many sources just like their counterparts the world over. They also face various problems including outdated materials, unavailability o f materials and inconvenient reading space. It was also found out that all the professional and para-professional staff of the Balme Library are aware that the academic staff have information needs. However, there are no laid down procedures by the Library to make its resources and services known to the academic staff. It was also revealed that the Balme Library does not have any official mechanism in place to understand the information needs of the academic staff. Recommendations made arising from the findings for policy-making include: 1. Academic staff should make known their information needs to the Balme Library. 2. Academic staff are expected to make extensive use of the University of Ghana Online Public Access Catalogue (UGcat) where provisions are made for users’ input for purchase of library materials, suggestions and many other relevant information that are promptly attended to. 3. Academic staff should accept the offer from the Balme Library to serve as Faculty/Departmental Representatives who will liaise between the Faculties/Departments and the Library in developing their sections (or subject areas) of the collection. This will be an important part o f the collection building process and will ensure relevance o f materials to the academic staff as well as instill confidence in the collection. 4. The Balme Library should acquire the right kinds of resources to aid research, teaching and learning. xv 5. The Balme Library staff must be proactive to monitor the needs of the academic environment by being in constant link with the academic staff in developing courses and reading lists for the students. Also, 6. The Balme Library should undertake periodic but regular assessment study of the effectiveness o f service programmes and library support o f faculty and student research, teaching and learning. 7. The Balme Library should be the first point of call for all academic staff in seeking information. xvi CHAPTER ONE 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background to the Study The University of Ghana is one of the six public universities in Ghana. It is situated at Legon, which is about eight kilometres away from the central business district of the capital, Accra. At the start of this study in 2005, the university community comprised 867 Senior Members, 1076 Senior Staff, and 2553 Junior Staff (University of Ghana, 2005). The University also had a student population of 27,414 out of which 1,440 were graduate students (University o f Ghana, 2005). Like the other public universities, the University of Ghana is financed almost entirely by the government of Ghana. However, since the 1996/97 academic year, students have been paying facility user fees. These are the Academic Facility User Fees (AFUF) and Residential Facility User Fees (RFUF); but these fees are small and only help to supplement the running cost o f the University. Due to financial constraints affecting most public funded institutions, financing of university academic and research programmes and activities by government has been significantly reduced. In spite of this situation, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Ghana indicated in the preface to the 2005 Annual Report that the University continues to encourage and promote research efforts and advocacy for the development of the country (University of Ghana, 2005). Faculty Members, he said, engage in all types of research activities from which they produce both scholarly and extension publications. Apart from presenting these publications for promotion, the Vice Chancellor stated that they have also assisted immensely in the nation’s development. Many Senior Members of the University also serve on Boards and Committees of public and private organizations, which benefit from their experiences. This, according to the Vice Chancellor, is in line with the objective of bringing the University closer to the people (University of Ghana, 2005). 1.1.2 The University Library The University Library is an essential support subsystem o f a university. The library is recognized as reflecting, even determining the intellectual status and wellbeing of the university. Thus Kwapong (1970), for example, considers the University Library as the heart if not the aorta of any university, and its academic health, intellectual vitality and effectiveness, therefore, closely depend on the state of health and excellence o f its library, which is indeed, its very lifeblood. Simmonds and Andaleeb (2001) also see the academic library as the “heart” of the learning community, providing a place for faculty members and students to do their research and advance their knowledge. To Raseroka (1999), the vision, mission and strategies which are selected by universities as a guide for meeting the core functions of teaching, learning, research and providing community service form the foundation on which the role of the university library is based. Hence perceptions held by the university’s stakeholders on the role of the library as a contributor to these core functions influence the environment within which the university library crafts its own mission and role. Wolpert (1998) is o f the view that, the university education process values self-motivated discovery on the part of students and 2 faculty and that libraries and librarians play an important and sometimes essential role in education. The Librarian and the library staff provide numerous services to these users, thereby helping to meet their information needs and other interests. Provision of these services has been until recently made through manual (though time tested) tools such as various types of physical catalogues, indexes and bibliographical tools. However, with the advent of the information and communication technologies (ICTs) in general and the Internet in particular, the role o f the academic library has been changing. The tools for organizing and disseminating information resources have changed physically as have the methods of accessing them. Users can now access needed information resources without stepping into any library building. They can also access the online resources including Online Public Access Catalogues (OPACs) of other libraries once the necessary infrastructure is in place. With Internet connectivity, it is also possible to have access to unrestricted scholarly databases available in remote institutions around the world. Ready examples are the Library o f Congress catalogues, the Online Computer Library Centre (OCLC), Medline and many others. There are also free electronic books and digital libraries available on the Internet for active and potential users. The Internet has thus opened the vast information resources of other libraries and similar institutions to students and faculty worldwide. 3 However, according to Lancaster (1979) and Hargittai (2000), the mere availability of information does not mean equal accessibility, nor does it necessarily provide a realistic chance that people may come across the types of information o f most interest to them. Consequently, to ensure equal access to information needed by users, library and information science researchers must strive for a better understanding o f how people seek information. Simmonds and Andaleeb (2001) have observed that many librarians today, in fact, do not know exactly the needs of the users of their libraries because o f the changes introduced by new technologies. Even those who seem to know the information needs o f their users have not taken the trouble to find out the difficulties the users face in using the new technologies to search for information. It follows then that understanding the needs of our library patrons in order to deliver effective information services is such an obvious statement that it is almost embarrassing to make it (Wilson, 1995). However, merely repeating the statement is not of very much assistance to librarians and information workers in higher academic institutions that are subjected increasingly to demands for more cost effective services, and greater relevance o f their work to the needs of the institutions. In addition to rhetoric, information workers need to understand the nature of information needs, how those needs are generated by the work the people do within the institution, their information seeking behaviour and the role o f the formal library and other information services in delivering the information. 4 1.1.3 Background Information on the Balme Library 1.1.3.1 Background to the Balme Library The Balme Library was formerly called the University College of the Gold Coast Library. It was founded in October 1948 with an initial stock of about 60,000 volumes. The Library began in temporary buildings on the Achimota campus and by 1954, the Library’s collection of books and pamphlets had reached 77,440 (Pitcher 1970). In August 1959, the Library moved from its temporary quarters at Achimota to the new building at Legon. The new building was formally opened by the Governor-General. The Eral of Listowel, who also unveiled in the Catalogue Hall a bronze bust of David Mowbray Balme (first Principal of the College) after whom the Library is named. The collection that year stood at 124,857 (Pitcher 1970). It is important to point out that the building was meant to house 250,000 volumes and accommodate 350 readers (Kedem 1990). In 1965, the Balme Library used to subscribe to about 5,000 periodical titles. Now its periodical subscription is below 20 titles. In the late 1960s, IBM introduced computer services to the university. These were at first used to prepare pay roll and later, students’ records. In 1987, the university administration supplied a WANG Personal Computer to the Balme Library, but it was not until February 1989 that the PC was installed and started service to readers. (This computer, however, is no longer being used). Since 1994, the Library has acquired more computers as a result of a CD-ROM Project initiated by the American Association for the Advancement o f Science (AAAS), The 5 World Bank, International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA)/DANIDA and Information for Development/ Ghana National Committee on Internet Connectivity (GNCIC) Projects. In addition to its book stock of 385,554 volumes, the Balme Library is reasonably well equipped with a list of current electronic databases like the African Journals Online (AJOL), EBSCOhost, Emerald, Cochrane Medical Library, Oxford Online and Cambridge Journal. The clientele of the Library are faculty members, postgraduate and undergraduate students, research workers, non-research staff, alumni, the university administration and the general university community. The Library is manned by 18 professional librarians and over 90 other staff o f all categories. The Balme Library is the currently the central library of the University o f Ghana Library System. It coordinates from the main Legon Campus a large number o f libraries attached to the various Schools, Institutes, Faculties, Departments and Halls of Residence of the University, most of which are autonomous. The Library is the nerve centre for academic work in the University. All academic related functions such as teaching, research and learning find their support-base in the library where all types of documents, are organised for easy access to members of the University community. 1.1.3.2 Recent Developments in the Balme Library Some of the recent developments in the Balme Library include the Library having its catalogues online called the UGCat. This catalogue can be accessed via the Balme Library Website at < http://library.ug.edu.gh>. This enables anybody at all, who has Internet connectivity to access the University of Ghana Library System’s collection. The online catalogue provides access the holdings and their bibliographic details, where they can be located, either within the Balme Library or any o f the libraries which is a part of the University of Ghana Library System. The Library is also in the process of establishing library liaisons who will liaise with the representatives of the various faculties and academic departments in a bid to have a good and a balanced collection in all subject areas. The various representatives and liaisons have been identified and informed by the various teaching Departments and the Balme Library respectively. The introductory meeting between the groups is yet to be held. The Balme Library has also set up a committee made up o f six (6) Senior Members to write up a workable Collection Development Policy (CDP). This document will define the library’s goals for its collections and will help staff members to select and acquire the most appropriate materials. The benefits of the CDP, among others, are assisting in budgetary planning and allocation of funds; forcing the library staff and the mother institution to think about the library’s goal. It will also serve as a selection guidance document and will ensure consistency over time regardless of staff turnover. 7 http://library.ug.edu.gh There is also a programme in place to evaluate the Library s collections at the end of the 2007/2008 academic year. This time is chosen because it is believed most of the books borrowed by students would have been returned to the Library, thereby enabling the library staff to evaluate them by the use of the Conspetus Model (IFLA 2001). This model is a collection evaluation and management tool that provides a framework to systematically inventory and describe a library collection. It will also help to identify the strengths and weaknesses within the subject collection. In addition to the aforementioned efforts, the Balme Library has had financial support from the University to acquire current and relevant materials to replenish its stock. There is also a package from the Carnegie Corporation o f New York to assist the Balme Library to revamp its journal subscription with about 150 print journal titles. 1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM The mission of the University of Ghana as stated in its current Strategic Plan (no date) is to develop world-class human resources and capabilities to meet national development needs and global challenges through quality teaching, learning, research and knowledge dissemination. To help the University achieve this mission, the Balme Library was established in 1959 to replace the then University College Library. The Library is the nerve centre for academic work in the University. All academic related functions such as research, teaching and learning and extension activities find their support-base in the Library where all types of documents are acquired and organized for easy access to members of the University community. The problem is that, little or no data is available on how faculty members seek for and obtain relevant information sources to aid their teaching and research work. The Balme Library is reasonably well equipped with a list of current databases including the EBSCOhost, African Journals Online (AJOL), Emerald, Cochrane Medical Library, JSTOR, Oxford Online and Cambridge Journals. There is also a user education facility in place to train users in how to access these databases. In addition to the databases, the Balme Library has many bibliographic tools like indexes, abstracts, a collection of theses and a database o f abstracts to theses (Database of African Theses and Dissertations - DATAD) which faculty can use for research and teaching. Faculty Members can also consult the University Librarian or any professional staff of the Balme Library to help prepare brief bibliographies which can be used for teaching and research. It is, therefore, expected that faculty members take advantage of these emerging information resources that are available in the Library and use them for their academic work. A look at the registration record of Senior Members at The Balme Library, however, reveals that only 150 out of the 400 Academic Staff have officially registered with the Library. With this figure, there is no record on how many academic staff use the Library. Experience of the Library staff and the Library’s attendance records suggest that only a small fraction of the figure actually uses the Library physically. 9 The questions that may be asked are: Why are academics reluctant to use the Library and its facilities? How and where do academics look for the needed information to aid teaching and learning? What other sources do they use to meet their information needs? What are the challenges the few who use the Library face? These are the issues that this study sought to investigate. 1.3 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY The purpose o f this study is to investigate the information requirements and information behaviour patterns o f the academic staff o f the University o f Ghana when they use the University Library and the emerging information resources, and the challenges that confront these users in the process. It is believed that the findings of this study will generate recommendations that would hopefully help to address the problem. 1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS To fulfill the purpose of the study, answers were sought for the following research questions: 1. What are the information needs of the academic staff? 2. What information sources are available to the academic staff? 3. To what extent do the information resources available in the Balme Library meet the information needs of the academic staff? 4. How do the Library’s managers determine the information needs o f their users? 10 5. To what extent does the academic staff know about and use the traditional information sources such as abstracts and indexes and the electronic resources such as the online databases and the Internet? 6. What problems do the academics encounter in using both the traditional and electronic information resources? 7. What are the factors that influence the information-seeking behaviour of the academic staff? 8. What measures are in place to ensure effective use of available resources in the Balme Library by academics? 1.5 JUSTIFICATION This study is significant in that, it is the first of its kind to be undertaken at the University of Ghana. It would, therefore, fill an obvious gap in the knowledge o f this segment of academia; and would also serve as a reference point for further research into the topic under study. It is hoped that the findings of the study would help the University o f Ghana Library System take more interest in users of information resources available to them; seek to know their information needs and thereby gear its information provision strategies to meeting the expectations of users in general and the academic staff in particular. This study is again justified because having knowledge of trends in the information requirements and the information behaviour of academics would lead to the improvement 11 of the University Library System’s information services. It is also an important input for cost effective and cost benefit analysis of the University’s information provision centre - The Balme Library. 1.6 DEFINITION OF TERMS Collection Development is the process of planning a library’s stock acquisitions programme first to cater for immediate needs and, more importantly, to acquire a collection capable of meeting future requirements. The term implies a desire for a depth and quality of stock, but it cannot be separated from the need to exploit the collection effectively (Feather and Sturges, 1997). Information Seeking Behaviour: The purposive seeking for information as a consequence of a need to satisfy some goal. In the course o f seeking, the individual may interact with manual information systems (such as a newspaper or a library), or with computer-based systems (such as the World Wide Web), (Wilson, 2000). It is also the complex patterns of actions and interactions which people engage in when seeking information of whatever kind and for whatever purpose (International Encyclopedia of Information and Library Science, 1997). Senior Members: These are University Staff who are appointed by the University Council. The Minimum qualification for entry to this category of staff used to be a first degree prior to 1991. At the moment, one year of study o f a Master’s Programme in a 12 related subject field qualifies one to be appointed as a Senior Member. There are two main categories of Senior Members. These are: 1. Members of the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG) Lecturers and 2. Members of Ghana Association of University Administrators and Professionals (GAUA). This group consists of some Librarians, Accountants, Medical Officers, Systems Analysts and Administrators in the central Administration of the University. Academic staff: Faculty Members who have a minimum qualification o f Master of Philosophy Degree and above who are involved in teaching and research activities at the University o f Ghana. It must be pointed out that until recently anybody in the University System with a Master’s Degree and who was involved in teaching and research was considered to be academic staff. Senior Staff: Employees of the University of Ghana from the grade of Assistant Administrative Officers to Chief Administrative Officers and their equivalence. They have Diploma and first degree certificates and their equivalence in their respective fields of specialty. Junior Staff: Employees of the University of Ghana from the grade o f a labourer to that of a senior clerk with its equivalence. This category of staff has a minimal educational qualification of Senior High School Certificate or its equivalence. It is important to note that, some Messenger/Cleaners and Drivers have lower qualifications. 13 Professional Librarians: Are the category of staff that have a minimum of Postgraduate Diploma/ Master of Arts/Master of Philosophy or a Doctor o f Philosophy degrees in Library Studies. Para-professional librarians: Are the category of staff that have at least Diploma Certificate in Librarianship or a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Information Studies. University of Ghana Library System: Consists o f the Balme Library which is the main library of the University o f Ghana, and all the libraries of Schools, Colleges, Institutes, Departments and Halls of Residence o f the University. Library Liaison: A librarian who is assigned to a specific academic unit as the primary contact person for a Faculty, and works closely with the library representative regarding issues related to library collection development, research and teaching support in their subject area. Library Representative: A Faculty member whose primary function is to act as a link between the library and the academic unit or department. 1.7 SCOPE OF THE STUDY The study concentrated on the academic staff at post in the Faculties of Arts, Science and Social Sciences during the 2005/2006 Academic Year. This is due to the fact that these 14 Faculties are relatively large, and therefore, the sample size selected would be representative enough for the academic community. It was anticipated that, collecting data from very busy academic staff during the academic year would be a very difficult task in terms of obtaining easy access to and response from respondents. In view of this possibility, the researcher studied the lecture schedules and consultation periods of respondents to ascertain the convenient times to retrieve questionnaires given out. The study was limited to the use of the facilities in the Balme Library because it serves as the hub of all the libraries in the University of Ghana Library System. The professional and para-professional staffs of the Balme Library at post were also included in the study. This is because they play a pivotal role in identifying and meeting the information needs of the academic staff. 1.8 ORGANIZATION OF THE STUDY The study is organized in six chapters. Chapter One serves as introduction to the study. It contains the background to the study; the problem statement; purpose of the study; research questions; justification of the study; definition of terms; scope of the study and the organization o f study. Chapter Two consists o f a review of relevant works on the study. The review covers these themes: models of information seeking behaviour, information needs in general and information needs of academics in particular. Factors influencing information seeking 15 behaviour as well as subject discipline differences were also covered. The availability and use of electronic resources and information seeking behaviour on the Ghanaian and the African scenes were also reviewed. Chapter Three discusses the Methodology. Here, the research design is defined. The selection of population is described, and the population characteristics and the sample size defined. The instruments for and mode of data collection are also discussed and justified. The Chapter also includes a discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of the methodology. Chapter Four deals with the presentation and analysis of data collected. This involves the use of frequency tables and percentages derived by the use of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software. Sub-topics discussed in the chapter concerning the Academic Staff as respondents include biographical information; level o f awareness of resources and services; how respondents got to know about the Library’s resources and services; use o f resources and services; use of the Balme Library; types of materials sought in the Balme Library; information seeking; general information sources used and problems encountered in the Balme Library during information seeking. Various sub-topics discussed in this chapter concerning the Library Staff as respondents include background information, their awareness of information needs of academic staff; means by which library professionals make resources and services known and suggestions on how to make library resources and services known to the academic staff. 16 Chapter Five contains the discussion of findings of the study. . The level of awareness of resources and services; use of resources and services; information seeking; use of the Balme Library and problems encountered during information seeking; and measures to ensure effective use of the Library resources were discussed in relation to the academic staff. Discussions concerning the Library staff centred on promoting the Library’s resources and services; user needs assessment; improving Library services and resources. Chapter Six contains the summary of findings, conclusion and recommendations. The chapter recommended the necessity for the academic staff to make their needs known to the Library so that steps could be taken to address them. Included in this chapter also are ways in which The Balme Library must familiarize the academic staff with the Library’s resources and also market her services and resources for better patronage. The need to undertake periodic but regular assessment study of the effectiveness of services, programmes and library support of faculty and student research, teaching and learning was also touched on. The chapter then concluded by emphasizing the need for both the Library staff and the academic staff to work together in building and maintaining a healthy library collection to aid teaching, learning, and research. 17 REFERENCES Feather, J. and Sturges, P. (eds.) (1997). International Encyclopedia of Information and Library Science . London: Routledge. pp. 61; 216. Hargittai, E. (2000) “ Open Portals or Closed Gates? Channelling Content on the World Wide Web” Poetics. Vol.27, Issue 4. pp.233-253. Kedem, K. A. (1990) “Applications of Computer Technology in Libraries o f Ghana”. Journal o f Information Science, Principles and Practices. Vol. 16, No.6. pp.345-350. Kwapong, A.A. (1970). “Libraries in University Education in Ghana” Ghana Library Journal, Vol.6, No. 1, pp. 42- 46. Lancaster, F. W. (1986). Information Retrieval Systems. N ew York: John Wiley and Sons, pp.312- 319. Pitcher, G.M. (1970) Libraries and Librarianship in Ghana, 1949-1969. Ghana Library Journal. Vol.4. pp. 12. Raseroka, H.K. (1999). The Role of University Libraries in African Universities. Accra : Association of African Universities, pp. 5-20. Simmonds, P. L. and Andaleeb, S. S. (2001). “Usage of Academic Libraries: The Role of Service Quality, Resources, and User Characteristics” . Library Trends, Vol.49, No 4, pp. 626-634. University of Ghana (2005). Annual Report University of Ghana (2005). Basic Statistics University of Ghana (2005). Staff List. University o f Ghana Reporter, No.732 Vol. 43, No. 8. University of Ghana (undated). Strategic Plan, pp. 11 Wilson, T.D. (1995). Information-Seeking Behaviour: Designing Information Systems to Meet Our Client’s Needs: a paper delivered at ACURIL: Association o f Carribean Universities, Research and Institutional Libraries. 25lh Conference, San Juan, Puerto Rico. Wilson, T.D. (2000). “Human Information Behaviour”, Special Issue of Information Science Research, Vol. 3, No.2, pp. 49-55 Wolpert, Ann (1998). “Services to Remote Users: Marketing the Library’s Role”. Library Trends, Vol. 47, N o .l, pp. 34. 19 CHAPTER TWO 2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction This chapter is a review of the literature related to this study. This section o f the study looks at: i) Models of information seeking-behaviour ii) Information needs in general iii) Information needs of academics iv) Factors that influence information seeking-behaviour v) Subject discipline differences vi) Availability and use o f electronic resources vii) Information seeking-behaviour of various groups on the Ghanaian scene. This chapter is a very important aspect of the study because the literature reviewed serves as a primary basis to support arguments or counter-arguments that emanate from the study. 2.2 Models of Information Seeking Behaviour According to Ellis (1993), traditionally, the field of user studies has been characterized by a rather stereotyped approach to research design and an orientation toward quantitative methods, the most frequently used technique being to employ some form of structured questionnaire and basic statistical analysis. To Ellis, this is ideal for obtaining an overall quantitative picture of information used by a particular group, but it is ill-suited for 20 providing a more authentic picture of researchers’ perceptions o f their information environments and more integrated accounts of their information-seeking activities. There are several information-seeking behaviour models. These include Wilson’s (1981 and 1996) models o f information-seeking behaviour; Dervins’s (1983) sense-making theory; Ellis’s (1989 and 1993) behavioural model of information seeking strategies and Kuhlthau’s (1991) model of stages of information-seeking behaviour, among others . These models are concerned with, on the one hand, generalized behaviours surrounding the actual initiation of information-seeking and, on the other, with a broader perspective of the information search. For example, Ellis (1989) created a behavioural model of six characteristics: Starting-Chaining-Browsing- Differentiating- Monitoring- Extracting- Veriiying and Ending by studying the information seeking patterns o f social scientists through tape recorded interviews with academics from various departments within the Social Science Faculty. These interviews provided enough information for a detailed and accurate account of the perceptions of the researchers o f their information seeking activities to be possible and to enable an authentic picture to be constructed of these activities. Of the characteristics, Ellis notes that the detailed interrelation or interaction of the features in any individual information-seeking pattern will depend on the unique circumstances of the information-seeking activities of the person concerned at that time. Leckie et al. (1996), however, proposed a model of information-seeking processes based on a review of research of three different types of professionals: engineers, health care 21 professionals and lawyers. Through their synthesis of research, Leckie et al. summarized that engineers rely heavily on oral communication from co-workers and supervisors; libraries are little used; personal files, knowledge and experience are rated highly. Leckie, et al. posit that information needed depends heavily on the type of task being undertaken (e.g. design and testing of a new product will require information regarding blueprints, drawing plans, testing procedures for simulating product behaviour, etc.), and that engineers tend to under-use electronic databases and resources. Two reasons given for this are that information systems are considered to be difficult to use and do not meet the information needs o f engineers. This has clear links with the findings of both Gerstberger and Allen (1968), and Pinelli, et al. (1991). Gerstberger and Allen found that a relationship exists between accessibility, frequency o f use, degree o f experience and ease of use. Pinelli, et al. found that relevance, accessibility and technical quality appeared to exert the greatest influence in the use of the four information products. The model that Leckie et. al. (1996) propose is particularly relevant to this study in that it focuses on the information needs of professionals in particular work settings but could be applicable to users in a variety of contexts, including lecturers, researchers and students in higher and further education. It may prove to be particularly useful in eliciting understanding of the work roles and tasks in relation to the different academic status and subjects. It is based on the assumption that the roles and tasks undertaken by users during the course of their work, or study, initiate specific information needs, which then give rise to information-seeking behaviours. Further, it suggests that information-seeking 22 is influenced by a number of interacting variables that can affect the outcome, and may occur simultaneously. Leckie, et al. argue that professionals lead complicated work lives that require them to adopt numerous roles, such as service provider, administrator/manager, researcher, educator and student and that within these roles are specific tasks such as assessment, counseling, supervising and report writing. The information needs then arise from the specific tasks associated with the work role of the individual and are influenced by many factors, including the role and task, and also demographics o f the individual, the context (situation specific, internally or externally prompted), frequency (recurring or new), predictability (anticipated or unexpected), importance (degrees o f urgency) and complexity of the task. These are known as the characteristics of the information need. Factors affecting information-seeking include the sources of information used, which can be many and varied, and awareness of information, which can be direct or indirect (through colleagues, databases, handbooks, etc.) or non-existent. Outcomes are the results of the information seeking processes that meet the task and role that instigated the need. 2.3 Information Needs The literature points out a confusion about the concept o f information use, which is mainly due to the failure of the majority of researchers in the field of user studies to distinguish between information use, needs, demands, wants and requirements. The reason for this failure lies, as Wilson (1981) observes, with the troublesome concept of 23 information. In this regard, numerous definitions have evolved, seeking to distinguish, for example, among “data”, “information” and “knowledge”. According to Wilson, the multiple uses of the term information cause confusion because researchers sometimes fail to distinguish between one sense and another, or simply leave the reader to discover which sense is meant as s/he reads the paper or report. According to Havelock (1979), needs are very significant messages within the human system. They are the dynamic forces which create instability within the person - system and which lead to a cycle of behaviours that ultimately will correct this instability. In the day-to-day work, lack of self-sufficiency constitutes an information need. The information need represents gaps in the current knowledge of the client. Apart from the expressed or articulated needs, there are unexpressed needs which the client is aware of but does not like to express (Devadason and Lingam, 1997). Another category of needs is the delitescent or dormant need, which the client is unaware of, but the information services provider may be able to bring to light these needs (Cronin, 1981). A need is specific, generally time bound- either immediate or deferred. The information provided for the need will be used; in the case of interest, the information provided may be used or may not be used. According to Crawford (1978), information needs depend on eight factors. These are: i. Work activity ii. Discipline 24 iii. Availability of facilities iv. Hierarchical position of individuals v. Motivation factors for information need vi. Need to take a decision vii. Need to seek new ideas and the viii. Need to make professional contributions, etc. Information needs are, however, affected by a variety o f factors listed by Paisely (1968) as: a. The range of information sources available b. The uses to which the information will be put c. The background, motivation, professional orientation and other individual characteristics o f the client (including his/her awareness o f the information resources) d. The social, political, economic, legal and regulatory systems surrounding the client and e. The consequences of information use. 2.4 Information Needs of Academics The idea of identifying the Critical Success Factors Approach as a basis for determining the information needs o f managers was proposed by Daniel (1961) but popularized by Rockart (1979). The idea is very simple: in any organization certain factors will be critical to the success of that organization, in the sense that, if objectives associated with the factors are not achieved, the organization will fail - perhaps catastrophically so. 25 Rockart (1979), by referring to Daniel (1961), gives the following as examples o f the CSFs: new product development, good distribution, and effective advertising for the food processing industry - factors that remain relevant today for many firms (Huotari and Wilson, 2001). Green, Loughridge and Wilson (1996) studied the management information needs of academic Heads of Department in 16 English Universities. The researchers interviewed 44 academic Heads o f Department, 19 senior administrative and academic support staff, 15 Chief Librarians and one Deputy Librarian. The objective was to find out the management information needs of Heads of Department and the role that University Librarians and senior administrative and academic support staff play or might play in satisfying those needs. The Critical Success Factors (CSF) Approach adopted was found to be an effective means of identifying and correlating departmental goals, the factors vital to their achievement, and related information needs. Goals, Critical Success Factors and management information needs were found to vary according to the age and culture of the universities, the research and teaching activities and academic disciplines of departments. Heads o f Department were found to be largely dependent on informal networks of contacts for their information; they did not expect to receive any management information support from their libraries. They also believed that financial and other management information provided by university administrators was often provided too late and was frequently inadequate, inaccurate, difficult to access, and too intricate or cumbersome to use. 26 Administrative staff found it difficult to identify and focus on the information needs of academic Heads of Department because their own primary concern was to meet the information needs o f their university’s senior management team and outside bodies. They, therefore, had neither the time nor the resources to devote to what were considered to be essentially second-order information needs. Senior library staff generally felt that they had neither the expertise nor the resources to support academic Heads of Department in their management role. Where support was provided by the library, it was invariably on an ancillary or ad hoc basis. The report makes a number of recommendations for improving the organization of management information provision to academic Heads of Department. Among these was the development of management skills education and training for Heads of Department. The University of Iowa Libraries Needs Assessment Group (2002) also developed and implemented a faculty and staff needs assessment of their library resources and services. The results gave the libraries the empirical support required to justify requests for increased fiscal allocations, and also pinpointed the areas, services, and resources faculty and staff want and expect from the University libraries. Contrary to popular sentiment, the results revealed that faculty and staff would like the libraries to invest more in the acquisition of print books and journals, in addition to electronic journals and expanded remote access. Even though faculty and staff are independent users, they rely on and prefer human contact and individual assistance. 27 This study also revealed that faculty and staff underutilized many of the libraries resources and services simply because they were not aware o f their existence. Like undergraduates and professional students, faculty and staff want expanded study space and improved physical facilities. Ocholla (1996), in a survey research, studied information-seeking behaviour by academics at Moi University, in Kenya. The results obtained established that a great number of academics depended on libraries and colleagues for information. Though the academics heavily depended on textbooks for information, they displayed great interest in, and use, current and research-oriented information sources. It was also established that the nature of discipline and level of programme influenced the information seeking behaviour of academics. Lack of awareness o f information services, and non-use of current awareness services, among others, at the University contributed to limited access to and use of information resources. The academics in the study also indicated that, they needed information mainly for career development to circumvent the “publish or perish syndrome” and also for their professional and occupational needs. The study concluded that despite insufficient relevant information resources at the Moi University Library due to budget cuts, academics still depended on the library for their information needs. 2.5 Factors Influencing Information-Seeking Behaviour The origins of human information seeking-behaviour are found in work on users of libraries and in readership studies in general (Wilson, 2000). The author posits that the post-war increase in the amount of scientific literature led in 1948 to the Royal Society 28 Scientific Information Conference (1948), which marked the beginning of the modern study of human information seeking behaviour. Information seeking has often been compared to a rational problem-solving process, where a gap in knowledge triggers a conscious search for information. Solomon (2002) argue that this may apply to some situations, but that in most cases the information- seeking process is dynamic and changeable; it is dependent on the context and to a large extent on the individual performing it. Some people may plan and structure their searches, while others gather information in a more flexible and spontaneous fashion. The reasons behind different information approaches may lie in the context, but may also be due to the person’s inner processes and needs (Solomon, 2002). 2.5.1 Psychological Factors The research tradition within Library and Information Science (LIS) has in recent years increasingly focused on users’ search behaviour. Within this tradition a particular emphasis has been on the context of information seeking (Solomon, 2002). It has been acknowledged that the information-seeking process is dependent on task (Bystrom, 2000), discipline ( Ochola, 1999) or stage of the research process ( Kuhlthau, 1993). This research tradition, where the individual is studied as part o f the context, has provided a valuable understanding of groups of users in a sociological sense. In order to gain a full understanding of information behaviour, it would be vital to further extend the focus to the user’s psychological processes. Allen & Kim (2001) have highlighted the importance of accounting for both the context and the individual 29 characteristics, as search behaviour is likely to evolve through interaction between the two. Understanding of psychological characteristics can shed light on both variability and patterns in information seeking (Wilson, 2000). Wilson’s model of information behaviour shows how psychological, demographical, role-related, interpersonal, environmental and source-related characteristics influence the information-seeking process. The decision to seek information is dependent on motivation that may have a cognitive origin or be emotionally based as in the need to reinforce previous values. Before the relevant information is retrieved the searchers must overcome possible barriers, which sometimes are psychological. They must experience the situation as rewarding enough and themselves as competent enough to actually take the final decision to seek information (Wilson, 1981; Wilson & Walsh, 1996). Motivation and interest influence the way information is used. The more interested we are in the topic, the more information we seek about it. Since people have a limited capacity for assimilating new information, particular attention is paid to information which can be related to previous knowledge. The personal frame o f reference forms a filter that picks out familiar information ( Leckie & Pettigrew, 1997). Information that confirms our previous values are particularly welcome and facts that do not correlate with our own views are often ignored (Radecki & Jaccard, 1995). Information sources likewise tend to be chosen on base of familiarity rather than potential usefulness. This also applies to information professionals like librarians (Ingwersen, 1982). 30 2.5.2 Cognitive Styles Cognitive styles are another aspect of knowledge creation with an influence on information behaviour. Individual differences related to cognitive styles and study approaches come into play in database searches, on the Internet and in virtual environments (Ford, 2000; Ford et al., 2001 ; Kim, 2001). Students with a holistic learning style are, for instance, more explorative in their searches, while their serialist counterparts build their searches in a narrower stepwise fashion (Ford et al., 2002). 2.5.3 Emotional Factors In order to get a complete picture of information behaviour, the consideration of affective and conative elements is important in addition to cognitive ones (Solomon, 1997). The cognitive uncertainty in relation to unfamiliar situations or problems arises as a consequence of one's rational judgements of required knowledge level and progress in work. Affective uncertainty is related to insecurity and pessimism (Wilson et a l , 2002). In the use of information systems merely technical skills are not enough; also a positive attitude and self-confidence are needed in order to cope with the systems. Emotional aspects like feelings of frustration, impatience, information overload, resistance to new information and computer aversion may form barriers to the search process (Nahl, 2001). The feeling of uncertainty, often expressed as anxiety or worry, is particularly strong at the beginning of a search process, when the users become aware o f their lacking knowledge about the topic (Kuhlthau, 1993). According to Venkula (1988), although anxiety in connection to intellectual work usually is a temporary state, certain individuals 31 may be particularly vulnerable to feelings of stress and worry in an information-seeking context (Heinstrom, 2002). Although the process o f seeking information may involve a wide range of negative experiences of frustration and anxiety, it may also trigger positive responses like excitement and satisfaction (Solomon, 1997). A successful search process evokes positive emotions, such as joy, interest and exhilaration, and consequently encourages the searcher to continue and extend the searches (Nahl, 2001). As topical knowledge is extended, confidence usually grows. The thoughts develop from being vague and confused to being clear and knowledgeable. Information seeking is consequently a cognitive and emotional process of constructing a personal understanding of a topic (Kuhlthau, 1993). A study by Mills and Bannister (2001) reported on motivators and demotivators that influence the information seeking behaviour (all the activities and experiences in which academics may expect to involve themselves in searching for information) of academics in the choice to use or not to use the library or certain other sources of information in Charles Sturt University, Wagga Campus, Australia. The motivators and demotivators identified by the study are linked to: 1 Sources (factors external to the user including colleagues, libraries, personal barriers, databases and librarians) 2. Affective (factors internal to the user including emotions, feelings, attitudes and the personalities users have) 32 3. Image (mental representations of the library and the librarian, ways in which the image is created and how this image motivates and demotivates information seeking behaviour. Other sources identified by the study, which influence source choice and image include: a. Technology- this plays a big part in image construction of libraries and librarians. Academics are also concerned about their capacity to cope with technological changes. b. Time constraints in professional lives. This is concerned with potential loss of self esteem, perceptions of information overload, image of librarians and libraries and understanding library policies. Identification of affective realm (feelings, emotions and beliefs) as a factor which influences information seeking behaviour by academics is very significant because affective response to sources, technology, librarians and libraries influences the creation of motivators and demotivators. The study concluded that, image is both a key motivator and demotivator in the use or non use of a library and that it is valuable for the library manager to better understand what can be changed to motivate clients to make a better use o f the library. 33 2.6 Subject Disciplines Differences A number of studies looking at differences in discipline and how they might affect information needs and information-seeking behaviour have been undertaken. For example, a study by Herman (2002) examined the transition to the electronic information era in academia. He identified the influence o f disciplinary-rooted differences in the conduct of research and their influence on information needs. The study concluded that, although scholarly research proceeds within a clearly discernible generic framework, the academic culture surrounding the disciplinary areas brings about characteristic differences in thought processes and work habits. Similarly, although research into how task differences might affect search performance has been carried out (for example, Saracevic and Kantor, 1988; Marchionini, 1989, and Kim and Allen, 2002), these studies used set tasks and looked at how, for instance, complexity of task affected precision (Saracevic and Kantor, 1988). The experimental design of these studies meant that disciplinary differences and academic status o f the user were not taken into account. Work undertaken by Brophy et al. (2003) examined the literature on user information needs by subject discipline and by status (lecturer, researcher and student) and conducted some analysis o f the raw data made available by the study undertaken by the Digital Research Library Foundation (Friedlander 2000). This work found differences in the information needs and information type use related to different faculties and academic status. Similarly, Leckie et.al. (1996) found out from a study on the information needs of 34 engineers that the written sources that engineers consulted consist mainly of textbooks, technical reports, catalogues and trade journals rather than scholarly journals, books and conference papers. Work undertaken by Brophy et al. (2003) recommends that, further study needs to be taken to examine this in greater detail and in the light of networked information services. 2.7 The Library-Faculty Connection The library-faculty connection or faculty-librarian collaboration is very crucial in ensuring that faculty has a stake on input in developing a university library’s collections. This is because the primary function of an academic library is to serve as an information resource centre for the entire academic community. According to Suresh et al.( 1995),in order to provide better service to academic patrons, liaison programmes have been established in some universities. Unfortunately, however, very little has been written on liaison activities or the role of subject librarians/specialists in academic libraries. The study by Suresh et al. focuses on how to implement successful liaison programme in order to facilitate library collection building and improve communication with the academic units. The study defines the concept of liaison librarians and library representatives in academic units and provides suggestions for setting up such a programme. 35 2.8 Availability and Use of Electronic Resources and the Information-Seeking Behaviour on the Ghanaian Scene On the Ghanaian scene, Badu (1991), Fiankor (1998), Jiagge (1999), Ofosu-Tenkorang (2001) and Folitse (2002), among others, have written on the information seeking behaviour of various groups. Badu (1991) conducted a survey on the information-seeking habits o f graduate students in the University of Ghana. The object of the study was to throw light on the methods graduate students use in gathering information. The study was intended to find out the effect of the user education programme of the Balme Library o f the University o f Ghana on the information seeking habits of students and to find out how well these students used the existing library resources. The study revealed, among others, that bibliographic awareness of graduate students who took part in the survey was very, very low. Also, the students did not have homogenous information seeking habits; their methods of seeking information varied. It also came to light that, students in the sciences depended more on private collections and bought more literature by themselves. Badu suggested that, for the Library’s user education programme to be successful, it must be integrated with the official university curriculum; and that the use of teaching machines and computer-assisted instruction would surely make a very significant impact on the course. 36 Fiankor (1998) wrote on the Information-seeking Behaviour and Information Use by Graduate Students o f the Department of Library and Archival Studies (DLAS) of University of Ghana. The objective of this study was to identify the information-seeking behaviour of and information use by the target group. The findings o f the study revealed among other things, that the information-seeking behaviour of and information use by graduate students of DLAS was greatly determined by the graduates’ curricula needs which resulted from study tasks (class assignments, end-of-term essays, mini projects and practicals) given by the lecturers in the various subject areas. To satisfy these information needs, the students sought information in their immediate environment beginning with the Departmental Library; libraries of their lecturers; the main University Library (Balme Library) and other libraries outside the university environment. The main finding was that, lecturers had an influence on the information-seeking behaviour and information use of graduate students. It was recommended that lecturers should continue to maintain their influence on academic work of graduate students by giving class assignments, mini-projects, class tests and examinations and supervision of research work. Jiagge (1999) wrote on Information Needs Assessment o f the Staff at the Water Research Institute (WRI) of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Accra. The main aim of the study was to determine the information needs of the staff o f WRI. The study revealed that as far as research by the WRI staff was concerned, the most important 37 reason for seeking information was to keep up-to-date in their disciplines. It was also established that research officers, technical and non-technical staff needed textbooks in subject areas o f their current interest to support their research activities. The study recommended that the library should be upgraded to meet the needs of all categories ot staff. Ofosu-Tenkorang K, (2001) undertook a study titled Investigation into the Information Needs and Information-Seeking Behaviour o f Members o f the Legal Profession in Ghana. The main purpose of the study was to investigate the information needs and information- seeking behaviour of members of the legal profession and to determine the nature, volume and adequacy of legal information available for use by the legal community. It was also to ascertain whether the traditional services provided by the law libraries were enough and adequate to satisfy these patrons. The study revealed, among others, that legal professionals relied heavily on the printed media for much of their information needs. The study also found that the information needs of legal professionals and their attitude to information were greatly influenced by the kind of work they did and further by the experience at the Bench or the Bar. The study also revealed that the most important methods which members o f the legal profession used to access information in the law library were by asking the library staff and browsing along the bookshelves. 38 Folitse (2002) also conducted a study on the Information-Seeking Habits of Students of University College of Education, Winneba. The aim of the study was to find out the information-seeking habits of students of University College o f Education, Winneba. This study also sought to find out, among others, if students were aware of the library and other information services, the methods used to access information in the library and the problems students encountered in doing so. The study revealed that the library services and resources were grossly inadequate. As a result of this, the students were unable to make maximum use of the library to meet their information needs. Markwei, (2001) conducted a study on the Awareness and Use of the Internet by the Academic staff and students o f the University of Ghana. The main aim of the study was to find out whether staff and students were taking adequate advantage o f the valuable information resources on the Internet in their academic endeavours and if not, why they did not exploit them to the extent they should. The study revealed that majority of academic staff and students of the University of Ghana were highly aware of the Internet and that both staff and students perceived the Internet as very useful, especially in the provision of information in their subject areas. The study further revealed that, e-mail was the most used service o f the Internet. Slow data transmission and information overload were among the limitations of the Internet as identified by the study. 39 Among the recommendations made by Markwei (2002) were that, well-advertised training sessions on the use of the Internet should be organized for both staff and students by the University; administrators in charge of Internet access in the University must endeavour to provide uninterrupted Internet service by employing qualified technical staff to maintain the Internet server. Adika, (2003) undertook a survey research on Internet use among faculty members of Universities in Ghana. The main objective of the research was to investigate the impact the Internet was having on the use of up-to-date information by university faculty, and also provide basic information on issues such as the level of Internet use and access to the Internet among faculty. The study found out that, in spite of the numerous benefits that the Internet offers, Internet use in Ghana was still very low among university faculty. The study showed that Internet use was likely to increase when users had access and received training. Adika recommended that immediate steps be taken to provide general access points for faculty through computer laboratories with full Internet connectivity on the campuses. The researcher also urged the University’s authorities, including Faculty Boards and Heads of Department to, as a matter of urgency to adopt measures for creating Internet awareness among their faculty. The focus of these measures, according to the recommendation, should be on what the Internet is, the services available through the Internet, and basic skills required in using the Internet. 40 The study further recommended that, there should be a way of constantly up-grading the skills of Faculty and ensuring continued access to the Internet because this would help increase the level of awareness and use of this valuable information resources. The benefits in obtaining relevant and up-to-date information from the Internet by faculty to perform their duties, the study concluded, would reflect in increased productivity in the universities by faculty members which would result in improved curriculum and course content, enhanced research and the generation of more published material with relevant, high quality information on Ghana. 41 r e f e r e n c e s Adika, G. (2003). “Internet Use Among Faculty Members o f Universities in Ghana” Library Review, Vol. 52, No. 1, pp. 29-37. Allen, T.J. (1966). Managing the Flow of Scientific and Technological Information. Cambridge, MA: Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management T.B. pp. 174-440. Allen, B.L. & Kim, K.S. (2001). “Person and Context in Information-Seeking: Interaction Between Cognitive and Task Variables.” New Review o f Information Behaviour Research, Vol.2, pp. 1-16. Alreck, P. L. and Settle, R.B (1985). The Survey Research Handbook. Homewood: Irwin Inc. pp.80-90, 97-127. Badu, E. E. (1991). “The Information Seeking Habits of Graduate Students in the University of Ghana.” Education Libraries Journal, Vol.34, No.2, pp. 25-35. Brophy, P., Fisher, S. and Griffiths, J. R. (2004). EDNER: Formative Evaluation of the Distributed National Electronic Resource: Stakeholder Consultation and Analysis - User Information needs (Deliverables MDA 3a, EDNER Project). Manchester: CERLIM (The Centre for Research in Library and Information Management). \Bystrom, K. 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(1988). “A Study o f Information-Seeking and Retrieving. II: Users, Questions and Effectiveness.” Journal o f American Society fo r Information Science, Vol. 39, No. 3, pp .177-196. Suresh, R. S., Ryans, C. C. and Zhang, W. (1995). “The Library-Faculty Connection: Starting a Liason Programme in an Academic Setting” Library Review Vol. 44, N o.l, pp.7-13. University of Iowa Libraries User Needs-Assessment Group (2002). “Faculty and Staff Use of Academic Library Resources and Services: A University of Iowa Libraries’ Perspective,” Portal: Libraries and the Academy, Vol.2, No.4, pp. 627-646. Vickery, B. C., and Vickery, A. (1987). Information Science in Theory and Practice. London: Butterworth & Co. Wilson, T.D. (1981). “On User Studies and Information Needs” Journal o f Documentation, Vol.37, N o .l, pp.3-15. Wilson, T.D. (1995). Information-Seeking Behaviour: Designing Information Systems to Meet Our Client’s Needs. A paper delivered at ACURIL: Association of Carribean University, Research and Institutional Libraries. 25th Conference, San Juan, Puerto Rico. 47 Wilson, T.D. (1999). “Models in Information Behaviour Research” Journal o f Documentation, Vol.55, No.3, pp.249-270. Wilson, T.D. (2000). “Human Information Behaviour” Special Issue o f Information Science Research, Vol. 3, No.2, pp.49-55. Wilson, T. D. and Walsh, C. (1996). Information Behaviour: an Inter-disciplinary Perspective. London: British Library Research and Innovation Centre. (BLRIC Report 10). [Available at http://informationr.net/tdw/publ/infbehav/prelims.html] (Accessed on 26/11/05). 48 http://informationr.net/tdw/publ/infbehav/prelims.html CHAPTER THREE 3.0 METHODOLOGY 3.1 Introduction This section describes and justifies the methodology chosen and the techniques used for this study. It begins with the research design and an explanation of survey research. The sampling techniques and population description are explained. The data collection instruments used are also explained and their benefits highlighted. 3.2 Research Design Research design provides the glue that holds the research project together. Research design decides the fate o f the study and its outcome. If the design is defective, the whole outcome and report will be faulty and undependable. The purpose o f the research design is to provide answers to the research question(s) and to control variance (Raj, 2000). Considering the fact that the study is concerned with information requirements and information behaviour patterns of academics, it was considered prudent to employ research techniques that would better elicit the needed information from the respondents. To achieve this, the survey method was used, comprising self administered questions made up of both open-ended and closed ended questions which were designed and distributed to both the academic staff and the professional librarians at the Balme Library. Open-ended questions were posed because the researcher concedes that the respondents might provide useful answers which might not be captured by the close-ended questions. 49 3.2.1 Survey Research To help answer the research questions of this study, a survey methodology was used. Survey research is one of the most important areas of measurement in applied social research. The broad area of survey research encompasses any measurement procedures that involve asking questions of respondents. Survey research is an attempt to obtain data from members of a population (or a sample) to determine the current status of that population with respect to one or more variables. According to Frankel and Wallen (2000), survey research is a type o f research which obtains data to determine specific characteristics of a group. They further state that, survey research has the difficulties of: a) Ensuring that the questions to be answered are clear and not misleading; and b) Getting a sufficient number of questionnaires completed and returned so that a meaningful analysis can be done. Survey design is a research technique by which information requirements are specified, a population is identified, a sample selected and systematically questioned and the results analysed, generalized to the population and reports to meet the information needs (Alreck & Settle, 2004). The strengths of the Survey Method in respect to this study were as follows: 1. The Survey Method was relatively inexpensive because it was a self-administered survey. The questionnaires were useful in describing the characteristics of a large 50 population, and they could be administered from remote locations using electronic-mail, snail-mail or the telephone. 2. Consequently, very large samples were feasible, making the results statistically significant even when analyzing multiple variables. 3. Many questions were asked about a given topic, giving considerable flexibility to the analysis. There was also flexibility at the creation phase in deciding how the questions would be administered. 4. Standardized questions made measurements more precise by enforcing uniform definitions upon the participants. Further, standardization ensured that similar data was collected from groups, and then interpreted comparatively (between groups of study), and 5. Finally, high reliability was easy to obtain; by presenting all subjects with standardized stimulus, observed subjectivity is greatly eliminated. Some of the weaknesses of the Survey Method were that: 1. A methodology which relied on standardization forced the researcher to develop questions general enough to be minimally appropriate to many respondents. 2. The method was inflexible in that, it required the initial study design (the tool and administration of that tool) to remain unchanged throughout the data collection. 3. The method pushed the researcher to ensure that a large number o f the selected sample replied. It might be hard for participants to recall information or to tell the truth about controversial questions. 4. Furthermore, as opposed to direct observation, survey research (excluding some interview approaches) could seldom deal with “context”. 51 Bearing the strengths and weaknesses of the survey method in mind, the present study used questionnaires to collect data. The study also depended on a population universe for its sample. The population included: a. All academic staff from the Faculties of Arts, Social Science and Science. b. All professional and para-professional staff of the Balme Library. 3.2.2 Selection of Subjects According to Busha and Harter (1980) the concept of population is fundamental to survey research. A population is any set of persons or objects that possess one common characteristic. This definition applies to the academic staff of the University of Ghana. Until recently, anybody in the University System with at least a Masters Degree who was involved in teaching and research was considered to be academic staff. Professional and para-professional staff o f the Balme Library also constitute part of the, study population. The professional staff are those who have at least a Graduate Diploma or a Master’s Degree in Library/Information Studies. The para-professional staff on the other hand, are those who have a Diploma or a Bachelor’s Degree in Library Studies or Information Studies. The population of the study included all the academic staff at post in the Faculties of Arts, Social Studies and Science during the 2005/2006 Academic Year. The population was extracted from the University of Ghana Staff List 2005! This means that all academic staff on Study Leave, Sabbatical Leave and Leave of Absence were excluded. 52 The total population of the selected Faculties was four hundred (400). The breakdown is shown in Table 1 below: Table 1: Selection of Population Faculty No. of Academic Staff Faculty of Arts 120 Faculty of Social Studies 180 Faculty of Science 100 Total 400 Given that the staff o f the Balme Library are supposed to render services to meet the information needs of the academic staff, among others, all the para-professional and the professional librarians in the Balme Library were also served questionnaires. The questions concerned whether or not the Library staff were aware o f the information needs of faculty, and their roles in meeting those needs. This is so because according to Devadason and Lingham (1997), a very peculiar situation is faced perhaps only by library and information professionals. They cannot prescribe the needed information to their clientele in the way the other professionals like physicians, lawyers, architects and engineers prescribe, where such prescriptions have a final say and authority, and which are gladly accepted by the clients. Such prescriptions are authoritative mainly because the clients of physicians and other professionals are 53 seeking advice in a field which they themselves are ignorant of. Conversely, whereas the clients of information professionals are mostly specialists in the areas they seek information and professional advice. This is also the reason for the difficulties experienced by information professionals in distinguishing the wishes or desires from the actual needs o f the clients. Hence the information professional has to prepare himself or herself so as to create confidence in the users about his/her professional capabilities. It must be noted here that, the first task in selecting a sample is to define the population of interest. In what group is the researcher interested? To whom does he or she want the result of the study to apply? The population, in other words, is the group to whom the researcher would like to generalize the results of the study. Frankel and Wallen (2000) note that unfortunately, the actual population called the target population to which a researcher would really like to generalize is safely available. The population to which a researcher is able to generalize, therefore, is the accessible population. The former is the researcher’s ideal choice; the latter, his or her realistic choice. A population can thus be defined as the group to which the results of the study are intended to apply whereas a sample is a group in a researcher’s study from which information is obtained. 54 3.2.3 Sampling Design It has been noted that, how well a sample represents a population depends on the sample frame, the sample size and specific design of selection procedures. This is because there are occasions when the goal of information gathering is not to generate statistics about a population but to describe a set of people in a more general way. A major development in the process of making surveys useful is learning how to sample. That is, to select a small subset of a population representative of the whole population. The key to good sampling as identified by Fowler (2002) is finding a way to give all (or nearly all) population members the same or known chance o f being selected and to use probability methods for choosing the sample. Also, Best and Khan (1989) have observed that the primary aim of research is to discover principles that have universal application. However, to study a whole population to arrive at generalizations would be impracticable, if not improbable. The process of sampling fortunately makes it possible to draw differences or make generalizations on the basis of careful observations of variables within a relatively small population selected for observation and analysis. Dealing with a heterogeneous population warrants that each subgroup within the population is sufficiently and adequately represented to reflect the true nature of the population. Stratification is a means to ensure the representation o f specified subgroups within the overall sample (Sjoberg and Nett, 1968). 55 The Sampling Design selected for the study was, therefore, proportionate stratified sampling. This is the process by which certain sub groups or strata are selected from the sample in the same proportion, as they exist in the population (Frankel and Wallen 2002). The use of stratification as observed by Alreck and Settle (1985) dramatically increases the reliability and confidence obtainable from survey data. According to Frankfort-Nachmias and Nachmias (1996), to estimate the adequate size of the sample properly, researchers need to determine what level o f accuracy is expected of their estimates, that is, how large a standard error is acceptable. This is because there are several misconceptions about the necessary size o f a sample. One is, the sample size must be a certain proportion (often set at 5 per cent) o f the population and another is that any increase in the sample size will increase the precision of the sample result. On the other hand, Alreck and Settle (1985), indicate that, the sample size o f 10% o f a population is enough to obtain adequate confidence. They observe that if the samples are to be divided into sub samples and analyzed separately, then the total sample size must be large enough to ensure adequate numbers within them. In this study, a sample size of 30% of the total population of the selected faculties was used. The following procedure was followed to obtain the stratification o f the chosen sample. 56 Table 2: Stratification Sample Faculty Population Sample Size Percentage Faculty of Arts 120 36 30 Faculty of Science 100 30 30 Faculty of Social Studies 180 54 30 Total 400 120 " Considering the fact that the various Faculties of the University of Ghana are made up of Departments, Schools and Institutes, the sample frame was carefully chosen. As shown in Table 2 above, proportional stratified sampling method was used in arriving at the actual sample used. Thirty percent (30%) o f respondents were chosen from each Faculty. This is because, according to Powell (2004), in drawing a proportional stratified sample, one would draw the same percentage from each stratum. The purposive sampling method was however, used as the sampling technique to select the sample size for the professional and para-professional staff o f the Balme Library. As has been stated earlier on in this chapter, the professional staff are those who have at least a Graduate Diploma or a Masters Degree in Library Studies. Para-professionals are those who possess a Diploma or a Bachelor’s Degree in Library/Information Studies or Information Studies at post during the 2005/2006 Academic year. There were sixteen (16) professional librarians, and seventeen (17) para-professionals in all. To Bailey (1994), the advantage of purposive sampling is that the researcher can use his or her skill 57 and prior knowledge to choose respondents. By using this technique, this study sampled all professional and para-professional staff of the Balme library. 3.2.4 Instrument for and mode of data collection The most common types o f instrument used in survey research are the questionnaire and interview schedules. Both instruments are virtually identical except that, the questionnaire is usually self-administered by the respondent, and the interview schedule is administered verbally by the researcher (or trained assistants) (Frankel and Wallen, 2002). For the purpose of this study, the questionnaire was used as data collection instrument. A questionnaire is a structured schedule of questions which are either self-completed by the respondent or completed by an interviewer who reads out the questions and records the responses. Again, a questionnaire is a list of questions which are prepared beforehand. Respondents can answer these questions either in their own words, or by choosing from set of responses that are prepared beforehand. The researcher can ask respondents to fill in the questionnaire, or ca